Auchterarder, Gleneagles and The Ochils

This area of Perthshire has lots of pleasant countryside, from the Ochil Hills down into Strathearn. Auchterarder, 12 miles south-west of Perth is best known for the top-class hotel at Gleneagles.

The charming town of Auchterarder hit the headlines in July 2005 when world leaders dropped in for the G8 summit at the Gleneagles hotel. The hotel itself is world-renowned, as is its golf course.

At nearby Braco, the Ardoch Roman Fort is one of the most of important surviving monuments of the Roman period in Britain. The area also boasts the magnificent Celtic nine-foot Dupplin Cross, now housed in St Serfs Church in the lovely village of Dunning. Before being moved to the church for protection in 2002, this intricately carved cross stood on a hillside for over 1000 years.

The narrow fields and woodlands of the area lead into narrow Glen Eagles, a name derived from the Gaelic 'eaglais', meaning church, rather than eagles. Visible from much of Strathearn, the Ochils are a long range of steeply-sided, round-topped hills, stretching 25 miles from the Firth of Tay in the north-east to Stirling in the south-west. Colourful hill names include Whitewisp, Steele's Knowe, Craigentaggert, The Nebit, Ben Cleuch (the highest at 2363ft) and Bengengie. Walkers can choose from a number of interesting lower level options through the glens, splendid individual hills or, for the energetic, enjoy a full traverse across the spine of the Ochil Range from Sheriffmuir to Glen Devon. The hills of Highland Perthshire, Fife and the Trossachs are all clearly visible from the many vantage points throughout the range.